The 29-year-old, who heads into this weekend’s Monaco Grand Prix as the Formula One world championship leader, topped the fifth annual SportsPro 50 Most Marketable Athletes list (#50MM2014).

The full list, featuring full commercial profiles of each athlete, is published today at www.sportspromedia.com, while the June edition of SportsPro magazine, out this week, delves into the stories behind those that make up this year’s top 50.

Indian cricketer Virat Kohli was ranked second, with Washington Redskins quarterback Robert Griffin III taking third place. Bulgarian tennis prospect Grigor Dimitrov is the highest new entry on this year’s list, which focuses on marketing potential over the next three years.

Athletes across the world were ranked against criteria including age, home market, charisma, willingness to be marketed and crossover appeal, following several weeks of analysis by the SportsPro team and other industry experts.

Mercedes driver Hamilton replaces Neymar at the top of the list. The FC Barcelona and Brazil star topped the rankings in 2012 and 2013, but drops to seventh place this time. NBA player LeBron James headed the list in its first year, 2010, with Olympic champion Usain Bolt taking top spot in 2011.

SportsPro editor-in-chief David Cushnan said: "This was a close one. Opinion was split on the top spot this year – our extensive research and debate concluded that there is no obvious standout candidate who is head and shoulders above the rest for the number one position in 2014. Several of the final top ten were considered but Hamilton scored highly in every area and certainly deserves to top the list.

“He is already a well-established global sports star, of course, but the next three years will be pivotal in determining whether he can make good on his obvious talent and add to his 2008 world title. A dominant car and his brilliant run of form so far this year only underlined our view that he is a man that brands should continue paying attention to: he will deliver the goods for them.”

Cushnan added: “There is debate every year about who does and doesn’t make the list. Our major criteria is always marketing potential over the next three years; in other words: if you were a sponsor, which athletes are going to provide value for money and help build your brand over that period? We’re trying to identify the commercial stars of the future.”

Tennis is represented by the most athletes, with seven, followed by soccer and basketball (six each), and motorsport (five). 22 sports are represented in total, including, for the first time, biathlon, surfing and volleyball.

The full list of the World's 50 Most Marketable Athletes, plus comprehensive commercial analysis of each and every athlete, detailing their inclusion on this year’s list and explaining their ranking, is online now at www.sportspromedia.com. The June edition of the magazine features additional coverage. To subscribe to SportsPro magazine please visit www.sportspromedia.com/shop

Notes to editors:
Formed in 2008 in London, SportsPro comprises SportsPro magazine, a monthly publication dedicated to in-depth analysis, interviews, features and comment from the global sports industry and SportsProMedia.com, the industry-leading online resource for sponsorship, broadcast, personal endorsement and agency deals. The new SportsPro news app is available now and compatible with both Apple and Android products. SportsPro staged its first industry conference, SportsPro Live, in March this year.

The World’s 50 Most Marketable Athletes 2014 was produced in collaboration with Eurosport, Europe’s leading sports entertainment group and the number one pan-European TV channel, broadcast in 20 languages.

For more information please visit www.sportspromedia.com. Follow SportsPro on Twitter: @SportsPro and use #50MM2014